Are we missing a trick?

Earlier today, I was looking for technical reference works on Amazon, and (being a bit of a geek) noted the following:  as of today's date, there are fifty-two new books on retirement planning available for pre-order.

That is, they're not available yet, but should be in print by the end of 2009. 

Now, Douglas Adams in his 'Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy' suggested that the answer to the question of meaning, life and the universe was 42.  Turns out he was wrong.  The answer's at least ten more than that - judging from this sustained and universal focus on planning for retirement.  This made me wonder why.  Why this huge, burgeoning market for books about retiring?  It seemed to be that there are several answers:

• demographics - the baby boomers are now hitting retirement age
• longevity - means that the old models for being 'elderly' no longer fit people's perceptions of themselves.  Nobody bats any eyelid at those ageing rockers such as Jagger or Rossi, or Rod Stewart disporting themselves disgracefully on stage - whereas a few years ago, they'd be comfortably tucked up in bed with a cup of horlicks.
• the failure of the old financial models and institutions - increasingly, retirement is either being deferred, or requires subsidising from part-time jobs.
• the invalidating of unrealistic expectations - the Thatcherite dream of early retirement is now well and truly gone.
• the crumbling of the benefits system - living in an age where entitlements are hidden from those who need them, or where the hurdles for access are becoming increasingly unattainable, or where increasingly the elderly are at risk from the NHS, instead of being helped by it.
• sociological - the breakdown of traditional relationships is throwing people back on their own resources, rather than encouraging an environment of interdependency.

If the fifty-two specialist publications are about to arrive on the bookshelves, why are we not talking more to our clients about it?  When IFAs uniquely have a handle on what it takes to achieve people's lifestyle aspirations, and if the market is so huge - what are we going to do about it?